My Daily Journal
A digital prompt based gratitude journal on iOS.
- React Native w/ Expo
- Posthog & Rybbit
- NextJS
- Typescript
- Codex
- Claude Code
- Cursor
Goals
I wanted to use my React Native knowledge to build a digital prompt based gratitude journal. My scope was to keep it iOS only to minimize complexity and leverage tools I already knew to focus on building the product.
Lessons Learned
- Experimentation
- Pricing: Not what to charge, but how pricing impacts perception and how it can negatively impact conversion when it's too low
- Paywalls: I learned a lot here from writing successful paywall copy to improving the funnel conversion rate
- Appstore Connect
- Learned how to setup a test store with test accounts to enable in app purchase testing.
- ASO: Big one here, such a new territory which at first was an afterthought because I had downloads but the conversion rates were low. Optimizing this boosted my conversion by 58.75%.
- Tradeoffs
- iOS only: Enabled me to focus on a single platform, I had the devices required and could rely on a physical device instead of a simulator
- Cloud first vs Local first: Cloud first comes with ongoing maintenance costs, which weren't needed as part of a v1. With iCloud storage and an evolving data structure, it made more sense to stick with local first and leverage platform features.
- Prioritizing features: This always comes up when designing products, and enabling users to provide feedback was helpful but required learning how to optimize what to build and what to leave behind.
- App Store Availability: As part of my ASO lessons I learned that country availability impacts the visibility of the app and can have a negative impact if you're advertising your app in a country that won't convert, ie. An english only app in Spain.
End result
Overall I've loved building this app and will continue to not only support it but build and market it. It's a passion project of mine that I personally dog food daily.